Written by

Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY

The Avengers,The Dark Knight Rises and Skyfall are among the 10 films in the running for Oscar nominations in the visual-effects category, according to a list released Thursday by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

The list, which will be whittled to five nominees, includes many of the biggest box-office hits of 2012 and one of the year's most notable flops: John Carter.

Joining those films on the list: The Amazing Spider-Man, Cloud Atlas, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Life of Pi, Prometheus ...